The phonograph, or, record player, has been around since the late 1800s, when Thomas Edison created the first cylinder phonograph in 1877, and basically, by using a stylus that responded to soundwaves, it recorded sound onto a tinfoil sheet that was wrapped around a rotating cylinder. Jump forward a couple of decades, and this machine was further improved upon, by an inventor named Emile Berliner. His improvement was the transition from a rotating cylinder to a rotating disc, which had a spiral groove that would run from the outer rim towards the center. These grooves would contain the information needed to produce sound, in the form of tiny bumps that mimicked the sound waves that were recorded. This was the main format of audio recording and producing for the next 90 years or so, until the production of cassette, and later, CD. CDs were introduced commercially in 1982, and gradually increased in popularity over the years, and by 1988, CD sales had actually surpassed vinyl LP sales. CD has now become the main format for recording and producing not just sound, but other media as well, such as video, picture, gaming, etc., and for good reason too. CDs digitally store information which is ready by a laser, rather than a stylus or pin.

So, now that we have this new, and advanced, technology that is superior to its predecessors in most ways, why are we finding it so hard to let go of the predecessors? In 2012, Vinyl sales reached its highest level since 1993. That being said, it’s safe to say that “the vinyl record has survived as an analogue product and seems to have been reinvented as a signifier whose value as a thing grows, both within and also outside the music industry proper” (Bartmanski, Dominik; Woodward, Ian. 2013). According to Lyor Cohen, CEO of Recorded Music for the Warner Music Group, “vinyl will definitely outlast CDs because of the resonance, the sound; the quality is closest to the way the artist wants you to hear it” (Cohen, Lyor. 2011). And it’s true, nowadays, the sound quality of most vinyl is superior to that of CDs, as CD uses .mp3 or .wav files, which are compressed versions of the original sound, to fit into the CD, whereas vinyl contains the raw, unchanged sound. However, this is only true for audiophiles. The raw sound can only be heard if played on a decent record player, with a decent sound system (which is pretty damn expensive). Cheap record players that have the same quality as a decent CD player, and some that are even worse (Flea Market), are increasing in popularity. If it’s not the sound quality that is keeping it alive, why are vinyls and record players still so popular? It’s mainly the novelty and nostalgia. Owning a record player feels more authentic because of its history. Even for those who weren’t around during the era of vinyl, picking up the pin, placing it on the record and watching the vinyl spin feels very old, and therefore, nostalgic. There is also something about owning a physical copy of it. I actually asked a friend who owns a record player, and she said that the difference between owning a CD, and owning a record is that a CD feels less authentic. They only contain .mp3 files, which can easily be downloaded from a computer. Even CDs are starting to try and mimic this feeling of authenticity. “The increasing number of CDs now being packaged in cardboard only emphasizes the contrast as we place the 12-inch-square covers of LPs with memorable artwork on the front, deriving from the days of Charles Mingus, Elvis and The Beatles, alongside their CD miniature imitations that are roughly the size of beer mats and whose artwork they roughly approximate” (Osborne, Richard. 2013).

In my media piece, I wanted to try and recreate the nostalgic and authentic feeling using audio. I did this by recording a ragtime cover of a modern-day song (Shooting Stars – Bag Raiders), and filtering it to sound older and worn out, and then played it to people and asked them how it made them feel. The main type of response that I got was that it made them feel nostalgic, but didn’t know why.

(Sorry about the badly played cover, I only had a 12-minute window to record this, and I was more concerned about the post-production)

<Bartmanski, Dominik; Woodward, Ian. The Vinyl: The Analogue Medium in the Age of Digital Reproduction. May 31, 2013>

<Cohen, Lyor. in The Guardian. 21 July, 2011>

<Osborne, Richard. in Vinyl: A History of the Analogue Record. August 7, 2013>